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August 24, 2066, 1:20 PM
Alex Mitchell (Volkov) POV
"Alex, the scanners have detected that patient Galina is starting to wake up," Vega's voice chimed in over the internal comm, relaying the data on the woman lying in bed.
"Two days — she's recovering faster than I expected," I replied with a satisfied grin, setting my mug of steaming coffee back on the table. "Let's go check on our 'patient.'"
As I reached Galina's temporary room, I knocked gently on the door. She was already awake, so it wouldn't hurt to give her a few extra seconds to gather herself. After all, she was bound to be disoriented. According to Sasha, she'd lost consciousness even before reaching the hospital. She had briefly come around once, only to fall back into a coma soon after. On top of that, her nervous system had taken a beating, and she was in the midst of restoring her synaptic connections.
"W—khh…," Galina tried to say something, her voice raspy and strained.
"Don't try to talk just yet. You've been out for a while." I poured a vitamin mix into a water bottle, shook it, and held it up. "Small sips — take it slow." Gently, I supported her head to help her drink.
"What… what happened to me?" she managed once she'd had enough to regain a bit of clarity.
"It's best if you save the questions for later, at least for the next half hour." I pulled out another vial from my pocket and slotted it into the injector next to her bedside. "I'm going to give you a dose of the regenerator. After that, you should try to eat something." I administered the injection, watching her sluggish reaction. "Not surprising," I thought. "She's in rough shape. She's not like me — a gen-modified human who can bounce back in a matter of hours."
"Al, I brought the broth," Kiwi said, stepping into the room, followed closely by Sasha. The blonde carried a tray specifically designed to make it easier for patients to eat without strain.
"Great. I'll leave her care in your hands," I said, stepping back. "Given that I'm a guy, it's better if one of you takes over."
With patient care successfully handed off, I could finally turn my attention to other matters — namely, finishing the new wrist units I'd been working on for the girls. This latest version was leagues ahead of my previous models. After combing through the guts of Vega's computational core, I'd made some serious upgrades. These new wristbands were now ultra-powerful processing hubs, designed for deep net dives and tightly integrated with custom-made glasses. The design borrowed from braindance headsets but was streamlined and far more compact. Essentially, I'd recreated the tech Lucy and Roxy used to rely on — only my version was stronger and, more importantly, safer.
Kiwi gently touched my shoulder, pulling me out of my focused trance.
"Alex, someone wants to talk to you."
"All right, just finished up anyway." I set the newly crafted wristbands aside, right next to the carefully packaged glasses.
"Those are for Lucy and Roxy?" Kiwi asked, her curiosity clear.
"Yep. Net runners are often limited by their processing power, and the girls are used to working with high-end implants. This way, I've made them something that's both powerful and, most importantly, safer."
"Are you going to give it to them yourself, or should I ask them to come by and pick up their gifts?" Kiwi tilted her head, a faint smile on her lips.
"I'll hand them over personally," I said with a wink, stretching my arms and heading toward our recovering patient.
***
As soon as I re-entered the room, Galina Yakovleva's disapproving gaze locked onto me. Clearly, she'd had plenty of time to catch up with her daughter about recent events, and from the look in her eyes, she wasn't exactly thrilled with the news.
"I see you two had a nice little chat…" My teasing smile probably wasn't the best choice under the circumstances, but I'd long since learned to handle these "intimidation tactics" with a bit of humor.
"Mr. Alex," Galina began, her voice laced with worry, "how much does my daughter owe you for the treatment?"
"All paid up — don't worry about it," I said, raising my hands in a placating gesture, sneaking a glance at Sasha, who was doing her best to look inconspicuous. Little troublemaker was clearly hoping to dodge the lecture her mother had in store by shifting the attention onto me. Another cunning teenager to add to my already overburdened hands, I thought with an internal smirk. Letting out a short sigh, I turned serious, hoping to ease Galina's concern.
"There was a set fee for the treatment, and your daughter covered every last eddie," I reassured her.
"And where would she get that kind of money?" Galina tried to scoff, but it only resulted in a rough, raspy cough.
"Snatching data chips from corpo types and a little side work for the Tiger Claws," I replied, keeping my tone neutral. "Sasha managed to scrape together about fifty thousand eddies over the past month, but it still wasn't enough." I intentionally held back a few details, figuring that if I kept Galina's focus on me, it might take some heat off her daughter.
"And where did my daughter find the rest of the money?" she asked, her words slow and deliberate, pinning Sasha to her seat with a withering glare.
"She didn't have to." I paused, watching Galina's expression as I let the tension hang in the air for a moment. "We took a… more strategic approach." My response was purposely vague — but that was the point. Right now, her nervous system was still recovering, and a little spark of strong emotion would help stimulate her recovery. I didn't plan to overdo it, but so far, I was managing a good balance.
"Explain, if it's not confidential."
"Trauma Team covered your bill," I said, flashing a playful grin and giving Sasha a reassuring wink as she looked down, clearly embarrassed. "The money the corpo doctors tried to squeeze out of your daughter? It was returned to her in full, with interest."
"Wonderful, now I have even more reasons to worry about my daughter's safety," Galina replied with a sharp edge in her voice.
I wonder if she'll notice we've been speaking in Russian this whole time.
"Mama, it's not exactly like that," Sasha finally spoke up, breaking her silence. "I didn't get the money from the corporation itself — it came from your doctor. His supervisor contacted me yesterday, and after our talk, the funds were transferred to my account."
"That still doesn't change the fact that yet another corpo has a bone to pick with you," her mother retorted, her tone skeptical.
"He won't dare. As far as he's concerned, I'm the one to blame, so if there's anyone he'll be gunning for, it's me."
"You're not worried?" Galina's gaze sharpened, studying my expression.
"One idiot more or less doesn't make a difference," I shrugged, leaving Galina with a look of mild disbelief.
"If I were you, I wouldn't take it so lightly," she replied with a sigh, her eyelids drooping slightly from fatigue.
"Personal experience?" I asked, my curiosity clear.
"Plenty," she smirked. "I've seen enough 'upstanding' cops go down that road."
"For what it's worth, I'm far from squeaky clean myself. And the law? It doesn't exactly restrain me."
"Oh, are you not afraid to say that in front of an officer?" Galina's question was sly, her tone unmistakably probing.
"Not at all. By local standards, I could practically be canonized — though maybe in name only." My quip hit the mark, judging by the faint smiles on both Galina's and Sasha's faces.
"Well then, Mr. 'Saint,' can you tell me why you decided to help my daughter? And spare me any dodging or attempts to change the subject. I'm even willing to answer any question you might have in return, with complete honesty. Deal?" She leaned forward, her gaze locking onto mine, waiting.
"There were a few factors at play," I began, counting on my fingers. "First, a personal grudge with Biotechnica. Second, Sasha here reminded me strongly of my own daughter. And most importantly…" I paused for effect, letting curiosity build around the room, "my own inclination. Something ingrained in me from my upbringing. I simply couldn't walk away, even though I tried." I finished, shooting a playful wink at Sasha, who blushed at my words, while her mother seemed momentarily taken aback.
"I'll be honest — I expected to hear something entirely different," Galina remarked, shaking her head slightly.
"You thought my motives were as simple as money?" I raised an eyebrow, questioning her assumption.
"In a general sense, yes," she replied with a hint of a smile.
"Earning eddies isn't exactly difficult in this city if you've got the right skills," I said. "Even your daughter managed to save up more than some mid-level corpo employee would make in a quarter."
"That's true," she nodded. "But you have to understand, I don't want my daughter entangled in things like that. Easy money tends to bring problems of the same magnitude."
"True," I agreed, "but you can't shelter a child from harsh realities forever. If you try, you risk them crumbling under the weight of real-life issues when they eventually face them." I shrugged, explaining my view. "Kids are precious, sure, but they aren't glass vases. Sooner or later, they need to learn independence, or trouble's bound to find them."
"And I wouldn't believe you're just over twenty," she smiled, a faint note of surprise in her voice.
Wonder what she'd say if she knew my actual age, I mused, leaving the question unanswered.
"Everyone has their quirks," I replied, giving a dismissive wave. Then, shifting the conversation, I added, "Galina, how would you feel about helping me with a little problem of my own?"
"Depends on how much of a problem we're talking," she replied, her expression serious.
"I heard that next month, Night City's city hall is implementing a law on so-called 'open bounties.'"
"I'm not sure I follow."
"I want access to all the 'full' data on any target flagged under this program," I clarified.
"So you want to be a semi-legal vigilante, getting paid to clean up the streets?" she guessed.
"Exactly. It may not be highly lucrative, but it'll make the city a little safer for those close to me." Not to mention it'll be good practice in handling the city's future scum.
"Alright. If you genuinely plan to do what you say, I'll consider helping," Galina replied, her eyes closing in silent agreement.
"In that case, I'll leave you both to rest. This conversation's already dragged on too long, and you need time to recover." Under the watchful gazes of mother and daughter, I slipped out, giving them space for a quiet moment together.